Check-writing machine.



G. M. BARKER. CHECK WRITING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.9,1909

5&595 Patented May 10, 1910.

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CHECK WRITING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.9, 1909.

95?,595, Patented May 10, 1910.

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660. M. Barker 4 Ahb'Y.

G. M. BARKER. CHECK WRITING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED PEB.9,190'9.

Q1595, Patented May 10, 1910.

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mm mdz Geo. M. Barker .4 6 d ETTT TAT GEORGE M. BARKER, OF ST. LOUIS,MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-EIGHTH TO JACOB RANZ, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

CHECK-WRITING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 16, 1910.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE M. BARKER, a citizen of the United States,residing at St. Louis, Missouri, have invented a certain new and usefulImprovement in Check-\Vriting Machines, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of thisspecification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevational View, partly insection, of my improved check writing machine. Fig. 2 is a top plan Viewof the same. Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view, illustrating the arrangementof the printing segments. Fig. 4 is a view illustrating acheck writtenby my improved machine.

This invention relates to a new and useful improvement in check writingmachines, the object being to construct a machine of the characterdescribedso that the several printing segments thereof canbeindividually adjusted into columns to which they relate to set updifierent amounts to be written in the body of the check. These segmentsare carried by a step-over frame and are normally supporte above theinking roller. The adjusted segments can thus be inked and the framestepped over to make a printing impression in the body of the check tobe printed.

Another object of my invention is to heat the platen on which the checkis supported during the printing operation so that in making a printingimpression the paper is forced by the printing type against the heatedplaten. The temperature of this heated platen is such that the printedportion of the paper to which the ink is applied as. well as the freshink is fixed when the paper comes in contact with the heated platen.

With these objects in view, the invention consists! in the construction,arrangement and combination of the several parts, all as willhereinafter be described and afterward pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, 1 indicates a base casting in which is arranged aninking trough 2.

3 is an inking roller designed to take the ink from said trough andconvey it to a distributing roller 4 whence it is communicated to thefinal inking roller 5. On the end of the shaft supporting roller 3 isarranged a ratchet wheel 6 with which cooperates a fiat spring 7constituting an operating pawl, said spring 7 being mounted upon thelower end of a post 8 whose upper end is supported in position by aspring 9. Post 8 is prevented from turning by a slot and pin connectionwith its guiding sleeve 10. Whenever the post is depressed the inkingrollers are rotated.

11 indicates a standard in whose forward end is pivotally mounted abail-shaped frame 12 which, in the operation of the machine, is designedto be stepped over from its rearward position where it is supported onthe post 8, as shown in dotted lines, Fig. 1, to its forward positionshown in full lines in said figure. Frame 12 is provided with anoperating handle 13. A shaft 14 is mountedin frame 12, on which shaftare mounted the several printing segments 15, said segments beingarranged side by side, as shown in Fig. 2 and having operating handles16 extending upwardly therefrom as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. These handlesare reduced by having portions thereof cut away as at 1 so that theirouter ends may be made to yield laterally.

18 are end frames mounted on the shaft 14 and carrying radial arms 19,said arms supporting a slotted indicator plate 20 through the slots ofwhich the handles 16 project. The side edges of these slots in theindicator plate 20 are notched, as shown at 21 in Fig. 2, each notchbeing numbered zero and from one to nine inclusive. The handle 16 may beadjusted in any one of these notches and by such an adjustment aprinting type corresponding to the number opposite the notch is broughtinto the printing line.

In order to maintain parallelism between the frame 18 and the base, Iconnect frame 18 with standards 11 by means of links 22 and 23' (seeFig. 1), which links are arranged inside of standards 11 while the armsof the frame 12 are arranged outside of said links; thus the links caneach pass the frame arms in their travel. The distance between thepivotal centers of links 2223, and the pivotal center of frame 12 andcenter of shaft 14, is the same; but links 22 and 23 are displacedrelative to each other and with respect to the frame 18 so that saidframe 18 is supported at three points, to-wit: by shaft 14 and by thepivotal connections of links 22 and 23. Frame 18 is thus rigidly main-*tained in its upright position, regardless of the position of the frame12.

In operation, the check to be written is placed in position on the basecasting 1 and against an adjustable guide 24 which insures the correctprinting point of the type. The

' the printing segments in position by engaging the notches 21 in theindicator plate 20. If it is desired to print a series of zeros to theleft of the numbers in the tens and units columns, then all of thehandles identified with printing segments of higher order are adjustedto the zero notches which fills out the printing lines,- as shown inFig. 4. If, however, it is desired not to print zeros in front of thenumber printed, the handles 16 can be left in their normal position inwhich the printing type are in a non-printing position, as shown at theupper portion of Fig. 2. In order to accomplish the filling in of thebody of the check, that is, printing the amount in figures and in words,I alternate the figures and words on the printing segments so that whenthe printing impression is made, if it is zero, there will be a. seriesof crossed bars above .the zero, the zero itself preferably beingprovided with crossed lines as shown at the top of Fig. 3.

In the cents and dimes column, each digit appears as a numeral withthecrossed bars thereabove, a decimal preceding the digit indicating thedimes. In the units column, the digits are spelled out as one, two,three, etc. and under these words are the proper numerals. In the tenscolumn, the words spelled out are ten, twenty, thirty, etc. under whichare the proper numerals. In the hundreds column are the Words onehundred, two hundred, etc. (hundreds being abbreviated), the propernumeral appearing thereunder. In the thousands column are the words onethousand, two thousand, etc. with the proper numeral thereunder. Inthetens of thousands column are the words ten thousand, twenty thousand,etc. with the proper numeral arranged thereunder. The capacity of thepresent machine is $99,999.99 but it is obvious that this can beincreased as high as desired.

In the example illustrated ,in Fig. 4 it will be observed that in thebody of the check appears the sum in dollars written in wordsSixty-seven, the cents, preceded by a decimal, being written in figures.The amount in dollars is also written in figures so that when a check iswritten by my improved machine the body is completely filled out and itis. unnecessary to write either the words or the figures by hand.

provided for. After the type in the printing line have been inked, theframe 12 is stepped over forwardly, causing the printing segments tomove in an arc of a circle from the roller '5, to the check a. After theprinting impression is effected, the frame '12 and its carried parts arerestored to their normal rearward position.

In order to prevent erasures of the matter printed in the body of thecheck, I heat the platen 26 on which the check 0 is supported during theprinting operation. This platen is the upper plate of anelectric heatingunit supported in a groove in the upper face of casting 1, the bottompart of the unit being in the form of a plate 27, between which isarranged suitable resistance wire 28 wound about asbestos sheets. Theentire heating unit is preferably insulated from the casting, andsuitable terminals are These form no part of my invention, are

well known, and hence need not be illustrated or further described.

While I have referred to electricity as the energy constituting theheating medium for the platen, it is obvious that other means forgenerating heat may be used. I prefer the use of electricity, however,on account of its cleanliness, convenience and ease of manipulation,such as cutting in and cutting out the circult.

, In operation, the platen is preferably heated to a temperature ofbetween five hundred and seven hundred degrees Fahrenheit, enough toslightly char the moist paper forced in contact therewith so as to fixor cook the ink and permanently discolor the paper throughout itsthickness, but not enough to burn or char the dry paper surrounding theinked portions.

If desired, the platen 26 may be a little lower than the and described,without in the least departing from the nature and principle of my.nvention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a check writing machine, the com bination with a swinging framecarrying a series of printing segments, of an inking roller on which thefaces of the printing segments are positioned when the frame is swung toa position of rest after the printing operation, rotary means forapplying ink to the surface of the inking roller, and a yielding supportforming a rest for the swinging frame, and which yielding supportengages and imparts movement to the rotary ink-applying means whenengaged by the swinging support.

2. In a check Writing machine, a swinging frame, a series ofindependently adjustable printing segments carried by said frame, aninking roller which is engaged by the faces of the printing segmentswhen the frame is swung to a position of rest, rotary ink feedingrollers adapted to deliver ink to the surface of the inking roller,

and a vertically disposed spring held post forming a rest for theswinging frame, the lower portion of which post engages and impartsmotion to the rotary ink feeding means when said post is engaged by theswinging support.

3. In a check writing machine, the combination with a swinging framecarrying a series of printing segments, of an inking roller, which isengaged by the faces of the printing segments when the frame is swung toa position of rest, ink feeding rollers for delivering ink to thesurface of the inking roller, a ratchet wheel on one of said ink feedingrollers, a yielding post forming a rest for the frame when the same isswung to a position of rest, and a flat spring pawl carried by saidyielding post, the point of which pawl engages the teeth of the ratchetwheel on the ink feeding roller.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses, this 2nd day of February, 1909.

GEORGE M. BARKER.

\Vitnesses F. R. CORNWALL, LENORE CLARK.

